Sino-U.S. trade turmoil “stops the war” and tariff adjustments for imported cars are expected to welcome the new window period

Sino-US trade turmoil finally came to an end!

According to the Xinhua News Agency, on May 19, China and the United States issued a joint statement on bilateral economic and trade consultations in Washington. The two sides agreed that effective measures will be taken to substantially reduce the trade deficit between the United States and China; China will greatly increase purchases of goods and services from the United States; meaningfully increase exports of agricultural products and energy to the United States; the United States will send delegations to China to discuss specific issues; Trade products and services trades were discussed, and consensus was reached on creating favorable conditions for increasing trade in the above-mentioned areas; the protection of intellectual property rights was highly emphasized, and cooperation was agreed to be strengthened; two-way investment was encouraged, and efforts were made to create a fair and competitive business environment; continued high-level communication on this matter. , Actively seek solutions to their respective economic and trade issues.

In an interview, Liu He, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, vice premier of the State Council and leader of the China-U.S. Comprehensive Economic Dialogue, said in an interview: “ The biggest achievement of the Sino-U.S. economic and trade consultations was that the two sides reached a consensus and did not fight the trade war and stopped each other. To impose tariffs, we must speed up the implementation of the four areas of opening up proposed at the Boao Forum in 2018.” Among them, it is particularly noteworthy that the Boao Forum held in April mentioned that “This year will reduce vehicle prices considerably. Import tariffs".

After the joint venture stocks are published than the timetable, when the import tariff, a major policy concerning the development direction of the auto industry and consumer interests, will come out, how much will the import tariff be reduced? Has become a focus of attention in the automotive industry both inside and outside. So for the automobile industry, does the Sino-U.S. trade stoppage mean that the major policy of reducing import tariffs is expected to come out?

In fact, industry insiders in the automotive industry have long predicted this and made bold predictions: The 10% cut in import tariffs will be a high-probability event. The relevant person in charge of the Auto Circulation Association had previously received an interview with the car headline APP that according to its prediction, the possibility of a 10% reduction is relatively large.

Mr. Zhong Shi, an analyst in the automotive industry, also expressed similar views: “The reduction in import tariffs is not as complex as the joint ventures' release of specific time points. It will soon be clear. As for the rate of reduction, the previous consultations are conducted fairly. The float, and 10% is an integer, so a 10% cut is also very likely." It also predicted that "if the Sino-U.S. negotiations produce results, the import tariff reduction policy will be immediately released."

A staff of the taxation system also indicated to the Automotive Headline App that as early as the beginning of this year, it began to formulate a policy of reducing tariffs on imported automobiles. At present, this policy has only waited for the final release. It seems that the auto tariff adjustment is expected to usher in a new time window.

This is naturally a stakeholder group for imported car companies. At the Beijing Auto Show just past, a number of car executives expressed concern about the latest developments in import tariffs. A member of the board of directors of Daimler AG, who is responsible for Greater China operations, Mr. Tang Shikai said in an interview with the Automotive Headlines APP that “the reduction of auto tariffs and the restriction on openness of foreign companies’ equity ratios is the result of China’s reforms over the past 40 years. The experience accumulated in opening up will be a positive signal from China's perspective of becoming a world-class industrial base at a macro level."

At the same time, Lexus China Marketing Minister Chen Hao told Automotive Headline App that Lexus will closely follow changes in government policies and make corresponding adjustments. The ultra-luxury brands are even more sensitive. Francesco Scardaoni, executive director of Lamborghini Autos China and Hong Kong and Macau, said that “sometimes the good news of tariff cuts was announced. This is also a confident expression of manufacturing in China. ."

According to the data released by the China Automobile Dealers Association, China's auto imports totaled 1.216 million vehicles in 2017, an increase of 16.8% year-on-year. The Circulation Association stated that the Chinese import car market is gradually becoming a relatively high-speed growth channel in 2015 and 2016.

In addition, as of now, China's auto industry has reached a market share of 31% of the world's total. Therefore, Chinese autos already have the strength to face a more open global auto market. Some analysts pointed out that adjusting import tariffs at this time can be described as "just as it is." China’s economic development has entered a new normal, and the transformation and upgrading of traditional manufacturing industries cannot be delayed. The automobile industry is not only a manifestation of China’s comprehensive capabilities, but should also be the first to adapt to the needs of China’s economic development. As soon as possible through cooperation with external emerging industries, it will fully carry out the upgrade of the entire automobile industry chain in order to avoid being left behind in the future freer global trade. Eliminated.

For the current auto circle, if import tariffs are lowered, it may be different for Tesla’s sole proprietorship and its own brands to enter the North American market, etc. As for the reduction of auto import tariffs, when will it be lowered? In the end how much?